The present invention relates generally to instrumentation displays, and more specifically, to displays used in testing, monitoring and manufacturing equipment.
Campbell diagrams are used to illustrate a set of spectra obtained during startup or shutdown of a rotating machine, such as a turbine. A Campbell diagram may illustrate experimentally measured vibration response spectra as a function of the shaft rotational speed of the apparatus being tested.
Known Campbell diagrams present information in different formats. Some known diagrams employ color-coded, high density spectral data. Other diagrams employ circles to represent spectral amplitudes. Still other diagrams plot frequencies only along order line diagonals. Still yet other diagrams employ slanting diagonal lines, the lengths of which represent spectral amplitudes. Each of these methods represent attempts to present complex data in a compact form, which often requires a tradeoff between visual interest level or appeal, and substantive content.
However, known Campbell diagrams often suffer from data density issues, in that the creators of the Campbell diagrams attempt to illustrate too much data in the diagram. Furthermore, known Campbell diagrams frequently employ illustration techniques and conventions that result in diagrams that are visually noisy and difficult to interpret.
It would be desirable to provide a Campbell diagram display system and method that enables vibration spectra for rotary machines to be illustrated in a visually clean, yet content-filled manner.